Dubai: A revolutionary wind turbine that can produce fresh water and electricity even in the remotest and driest areas on the planet is set to rise in Ghantoot nature reserve within the next few weeks.
The wind turbine converts humidity in the air into a liquid state. It is also able to progenerate electricity to power air-conditioners and lighting.
After a partnership agreement with Emirates Marine Environmental Group (EMEG), which manages the reserve, the new French-built wind turbine is ready to be installed and tested for a whole year, said Major Ali Saqr Al Suwaidi, EMEG chairman.
“This project has received a global prize and will be costing around $2 million. On our part, EMEG has done its best to prepare the area and test it before Eole Water installs the device in Ghantoot reserve. We are now just waiting for them to get the equipment and install it,” said Al Suwaidi.
“The trial will include examining how much litres of water will the turbine produce from humid. This will be a very good future project and a big step forward. Such sustainable technologies need to be implemented to produce very clean energy and water and can reduce UAE’s reliance on desalination plants,” he said.
The whole aim behind the project according to Al Suwaidi was to make the Ghantoot reserve a completely no-carbon area where people will only be allowed to enter the area by horse or by foot.
In 2012, the French company was undergoing trials in Abu Dhabi to determine the device’s practicality in desert conditions and the tests were successful and showed that the turbines can withstand harsh desert conditions and sandstorms. Large quantities of water were produced wwith around 62 litres of fresh water an hour.
After showing promising results, the wind turbine firm decided to relocate their testing program, choosing the environmentally Ghantoot reserve in Dubai instead.
An Eole Water spokesperson told Gulf News in an earlier interview that the company has high expectations of Ghantoot reserve where the wind turbine is expected to produce larger quantities of water given its close proximity to the Gulf shores and high humidity levels along the coast.
Thibault Janin, marketing and communications director of Eole Water, said once the device is installed in the reserve, the UAE will become a world destination for other countries looking to harness the ability of the Eole Water wind turbines to produce fresh water and electricity in remote areas with no connections needed to a national electricity grid or potable water infrastructure system.
“Eole Water will be able bring its customers and show the true potential of the turbine. I am sure they will be impressed with it,” he said.
The company plans to promote the technology in other countries throughout the Gulf, Middle East and around the globe as well.
